Month: March 2017

First off i’d I would just like to wish everyone a Happy mothers day 🙂 I hope you had a nice time with your loved ones and family. Secondly, its recipe time! Over the next couple of weeks I am going to be travelling about a bit, so decided to come up with a recipe for a snack that is filling but easy to pop in a bag, all ready if I get a bit peckish. The bars are quite dense, but moist enough not to crumble and I have tried out two flavours.

Strawberry and chocolate:

1/2 punnet grated strawberries

2 handfuls of rasins

2 spoonfuls of coconut oil

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

200g self raising flour

50g oatmeal

Pear and pumpkin seed:

2 grated pears

2 handfuls of raisins

2 handfuls of pumpkin seeds

50g oatmeal

200g self raising flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

2 spoonfuls of coconut oil

Add all the ingredients into a bowl and mix until the mixture is easily rolled into a ball. If the mixture isnt moist enough, add some soya milk. Line a baking tray with coconut oil, then press the mixture into a square shape, an inch in depth. Drizzle with sugar-free syrup then bake for 30 minutes at 180 celsius. Let them cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bars. I wrapped my bars in clingfilm then freezed them. Enjoy!

Since switching to a healthy lifestyle, I tried to supliment icecream with frozen yoghurt, but it just doesnt have the same indulgent effect! My recipe for vegan icecream used coconut milk, instead of cream but it still has the same creamy taste!

What you need:

4 bananas

1 tin of coconut milk

Sugar free syrup

Raisins

Brown sugar (optional)

2 teaspoons of cornstarch

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and blend with a hand blender or whisk until smooth. Place into a container and mix every now and then during the freezing process. It should be ready to eat after an hour in the freezer.

I served 2 scoops of my ice cream with fruit, soya yoghurt, dried fruit and nuts.

By now I think we have all established that weight only workouts are not my favourite thing. However, it is still nice to have sessions focused on one muscle group, because it is easier to track progress and you often feel really good the next day (or potentially a bit sore, depending on the intensity of the workout). Lately I have desognated one day a week to specifically focus on using the weight machines and free weights to tone up my back and arms. So why not have a day focusing on legs but with infused with cardio?

Cardio/leg workout:

I start by using the rowing machine for 20 minutes this is broken down as follows.

5 minutes low intensity.

5 minutes higher intensity.

1-2 minutes rest (drink water).

5 minutes high intensity.

5 minutes low intensity.

This type of activity should really work your legs, the key is to get the right type of rowing technique. I will briefly try to explain in words what you roughly should be doing but I will also include some good youtube links below to visually see what you should be doing!

Alright here it goes, try to tense your core muscles to prevent any back injuries. your arms shouldn’t have any real movement until your legs are almost full extended. you should pull the handle up until above your belly button and slightly lean back. You should try to tuck your elbows in a bit and avoid making frog legs as this can hurt your knees. In case that was horribly confusing here are some helpful visual links:

Next, I do 3 sets of 10 reps on leg press (I am lifting 55kg at the moment).

Followed by, 15 minutes on the step mill, with every 3 minutes doing 1 minute of leg raises, missing out one step.

To finish I do 3 sets of 10 reps of squats and 3 sets of 10 rep stationary lunges.

Inspiration for today’s recipe is a result of my essay induced snack cravings. I’m sure you have all experienced a sweet tooth craving while you are studing, are relaxing after work or 3 hours in to a movie marathon. Instead of binging out on unhealthy snacks, behold at my yummy warm cake in a mug.

Add a some syrup to the bottom of a mug, then add all the other ingredients to the mug and stir to a smooth consistency. Microwave for 2-3 minutes until cooked through. Drizzle syrup on top then enjoy!